Epilogue
Eighteen months later…
Nearby watching it all, Toni grinned although slightly annoyed. She’d spent her whole life trying to be positive, even in the darkest of circumstances, and now she was surrounded by nothing but light.
She moved a vase on a table, adjusting the flowers arranged in it, and peered around at the many faces as her husband neared her with his head in his phone.
“Where the hell is Jewel?” Toni demanded.
Bull didn’t bother looking up. “You know better than to ask me that.”
“The ribbon cutting is in eight minutes, Bezai.”
“Then he’ll be here in seven minutes and fifty-nine seconds,” he muttered.
Toni slowly turned to him, that stern expression on her pretty, naturally glam beat face.
She was gorgeous today in a pencil skirt, sleeveless blouse, and Jimmy Choo heels.
His suit coordinated with her ensemble, and women were eyeing him from all age groups all day.
Toni didn’t allow it to upset her. She’d grown confident in herself, Bull, and their marriage. They were unbreakable.
“What?” Bull finally looked up.
“That’s your friend.”
“Ain’t he kind of like your brother? I mean, you and Lotus be on that sis shit,” Bull mocked.
“You chose him first.” She aimed a finger at him.
“That’s fair.” Bull nodded.
“Why everybody standing outside looking mad? Ain’t this supposed to be a celebration?” Jewel said, chewing on a hot dog fresh off the grill that he swiped on the way over with some unnecessary shit tucked under his arm. A big ass pair of custom ceremonial scissors.
“Jewel, we already had scissors,” Toni told him.
Looking offended, he swallowed the last bite of his hot dog.
“Them lil ass arts and craft scissors?”
“Oh, my God. Where is Lotus?” No sooner did she speak; she spotted her bestie approaching in her rose gold midi style dress and gold accessories.
With Eazy behind her carrying little Ezekiel Jr. aka EJ in his arms, they looked around at the turnout.
So many people showed up to support that it was overwhelming.
All they kept hearing was how beneficial this place was going to be to the community and all the resources it would bring with it.
Although Bull and Eazy both invested in bringing it to life, it was the vision that Lotus and Toni had that made it all come together.
“I’m here. What you need me to do?”
“Put a damn collar and leash on him.” Toni pointed to Jewel.
Their entire family was present. Kissa and Javon were with Taci, Summit, and Whistler, keeping an eye on the kids, and a very sober Brenda assisted them.
She’d really shown up, not only for Bull, but more importantly for her grandchildren.
They were her second chance, and she wasn’t about to let drugs and alcohol keep her from Bijou or Breeze the way it did her own sons.
She’d made peace with the whole Braxton situation as well.
Had she not done what she did, there was no telling how any of their lives would have turned out.
Part of her wished she’d done it sooner. Maybe Bronx would have been spared.
“Uh-uh, that is his fiancée’s job.” Lotus flipped some of her hair and looked around. “Where is Rhema?”
“You know she volunteered with the hospital for the physicals,” Toni reminded her. “Sis is on duty.”
“For one day, nigga. Just one. Can you act like you got some damn sense?” Eazy pleaded with his brother-in-law.
He and Lotus were coming up on their one year anniversary.
Before EJ was born he proposed and they ended up with a courthouse wedding.
Lotus was too pregnant to patiently plan anything else, but she wanted to marry Eazy more than anything.
Since he’d also started his own Campbell Fine Art Gallery, a lot of his time was spent building that brand while they waited on the arrival of their son.
“When have I ever embarrassed this family?” Jewel looked around.
“Lord. Kissa!” Toni screamed, looking over her shoulder for his mother.
“Everything looks so good!” Lotus clapped her hands together.
“It really does,” Toni agreed.
“Okay, y’all gon’ sit around having this heart to heart or we doing this shit?” Jewel held up the big scissors.
“You ready?” Toni reached for Lotus’s hand.
“Ready.”
The radio DJ’s voice erupted over the large speakers set up.
“You are locked in to 98.7 The Pointe, the sound of Prospect Pointe. Don’t forget, today is the grand opening of the Pointe Family & Development Center.
We’re broadcasting live all afternoon, so pull up, bring the babies, grab you a plate…
and somebody tell Jewel Bailey we are still not letting that man near this microphone. ”
“Hater.” Jewel twisted his mouth.
Positioning themselves up front, with their family surrounding them, and the rest of the community rallying together, Toni turned to fix Bull’s tie to his suit.
“Don’t make that face, Bezai,” she scolded, adjusting it so that it was a little tighter and more centered.
“What face?”
“That I’m only here because my wife made me come face,” she mocked him.
“Baby, that’s my regular face.”
“Exactly. Try something different.” She leaned forward and kissed his lips then inspected Jou Jou and Breeze to make sure they were camera ready.
Bull took a moment to look at the building and everything surrounding him.
He left Prospect Pointe so long ago, vowing to never come back to this sad ass town.
Yet, here he was. Lotus and Toni’s dream was brought to life.
Something good. Positive. A safe place for anybody who didn’t have that.
Opportunity. Resources. Something his children could inherit that wasn’t tainted by bloodshed.
He was honestly impressed with their whole idea and how they brought it all together.
Once Toni was satisfied with her children’s appearance, she took one more glance at her man, and he caught her looking.
“What?”
“Something’s on your mind.”
His arm slid around her waist, pulling her closer.
“I’m just proud of you. You did good.”
The intimate moment was cut short.
“Y’all finna fuck, or we cutting this ribbon?”
“Jewel!” Toni hissed.
“I’m just saying. Over there whispering like y’all the only two muhfuckas here. Hellooooo, what about the rest of us that contributed?” He waved his hand, indicating himself.
The ribbon cutting put things into full swing.
Soon, Toni and Lotus lined up to take pictures for the newspaper and local magazine articles while also doing public interviews on camera with the TV stations.
Within an hour, their heads swirled, and the two decided to take a break together under an old Oak tree with shade.
“Well, we did it, Lo!” Toni gushed, staring at their building. Their vision. Over a year ago it was just something that only existed in their minds. It quickly became so much more than that.
“Yes, we did, T. High five, girl. Because it wasn’t easy.” The two slapped hands, and someone cleared their throat nearby. Essence.
In her arms she carried her beautiful, warm mocha skinned daughter with a head full of hair.
Lotus’s heart melted, and for the first time, Toni felt no hate for the girl.
Her baby girl clung to her, sucking on a binky in her mouth and studying both Toni and Lotus.
She was so alert as her little eyes volleyed between the two women.
“Essence. She’s beautiful.” Lotus pressed a hand against her chest. “I didn’t think you would come.”
“I got the invitations. From both of you.” Essence smiled in Toni’s direction. “Thank you.”
After the whole Midas situation, she had to get out of Prospect Pointe, only to realize weeks later that she was pregnant with his child. She didn’t inform anyone initially, it was Taci and her dreams that figured it out before anybody.
“I figure we should all be able to start fresh,” Toni declared. “We all made mistakes. Everybody deserves a second, third, sometimes forth chance.”
“Come on, let me show you around,” Lotus offered, coming up beside Essence.
Once the tours were over, Toni and Lotus invited everyone into the auditorium/multipurpose room.
A huge screen took up one wall and plenty of seating surrounded it.
The project took plenty of time and effort over the course of almost two years, and they hadn’t revealed the finished product of their official commercial to anyone yet.
It was important to both to keep it to themselves.
Apprehension quickly set in when the lights dimmed and the screen went black.
When their commercial rolled in, Bijou and Breeze clapped and pointed at the screen.
“Mama!” Jou Jou yelled.
“Lolo!” Breeze chimed in.
The family laughed at both kids as they watched with wide eyes. It was wild for them to see their mama and favorite nanny on TV. After panning through a couple of different scenes, it switched back to Toni and Lotus inside the lobby of their building together with their final message.
“Where families find support.,” Lotus quoted.
“And every child has room to grow,” Toni added
When the video ended, the room erupted in applause. Eazy stood on his feet with his son in his arms, cheering his woman on. Standing next to Toni, she got emotional, and the two embraced as the cameras went wild.
In the back of the room, Toni spotted Sudan amidst the crowd, looking on with pride.
Giving her a small nod, he waved. He’d been good about not being intrusive, not exactly sure where he fit in.
His wife and other children weren’t happy when they heard the news about Toni, but he refused to not be a part of his daughter and grandchildren’s lives, even if it was from a distance.
The media would have a field day, and Toni had already been through enough.
She deserved peace, and he was going to grant her that.
After working things out with Bull, there was no reason for any strife between any of them.
All debts were settled, and they were free to move on.
“Okay, time for the official photo in front of the center!” Kissa yelled.
Folks trampled over each other to get out front. Too many people chatted, while babies cried because it was past some of their nap times. Breeze refused to stand still, and the photographer started to snap before he could even get everyone to pose. Talk about chaotic.
“Alright, everybody look this way!”
“The hell we need seventy-five damn pictures for?” Summit grumbled as he snapped away.
“Hush, old man!” Taci hissed, wrapping her arm around him and pulling him close.
“Yo, I’m one of the tallest niggas out here. I need to be in the back,” Bull complained, tugging at his tie.
“Ain’t nobody ask you that shit, Bezai,” Toni griped. “That’s why Breeze can’t stand still, and you just don’t want to stand in front.” She adjusted Bijou on her hip.
Finally, there was some order, and everyone was at least in position, but somehow, Jewel ended up front and center, which Lotus was first to notice.
“Why are you in the middle?”
“Because I’m the glue,” Jewel answered, looking around like the answer was obvious while everyone side eyed him or turned their noses up.
“Nigga, you the problem,” Bull pointed out.
“Same difference.” Jewel shrugged. “I give all y’all something to talk about. I’m walking fucking content. You’re welcome.”
The photographer begged them all to be on their best behavior as he tried to get a decent shot of everyone. There was entirely too much going on. Once everyone finally got settled, the kids were quiet, fake smiles plastered everywhere, he prepared for the final shot.
“Everybody say, Prospect Pointe!” he encouraged with the lens against his eye.
Jewel cupped his hand around his mouth simultaneously and yelled, “Bull used to be a hoe!”
CLICK! The photo was snapped with Toni falling over laughing while Lotus let out a scream, and Eazy was mid-laugh.
Meanwhile, Bull looked like he was ready to murder Jewel.
Taci’s mouth hung open while Summit, Kissa, Javon, and Essence all fought laughs.
For so long, they all thought survival meant escaping their dark situations. Maybe they were wrong.
Was survival possibly making it work? Sticking around? Putting in the work? Getting older, having babies, building things, and learning how to forgive? Toni stood, taking it all in. She looked forward to more cookouts, more juvenile arguments, and being annoyed by Jewel for another thirty years.
As much as Prospect Pointe had taken from them, it had given just as much in return.
Love. Loss. Family. Enemies. Not everybody got a second chance, yet they had survived where others hadn’t.
What she learned in the last five plus years was that surviving was never the same as living, and these were the times she’d prayed for.
The strong fragrance of his Tom Ford cologne and warm touch from her husband wrapping his arms around her comforted her. Staring at the doors of her latest dream, she watched another family walk inside together and smiled.
“You did that, T,” Bull whispered against her ear before she faced him with a sexy smile.
“And it all started with a hood wife and her rich goon.”
THE END